Optimism in the fields - farmers see brighter days ahead

Nov 08, 2023

Agriculture's heartbeat seems to have gotten stronger in October, with the Purdue/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer taking a 4-point leap forward to a reading of 110. The upturn is a composite result of happier times on the farm now and a sunnier outlook for the days to come.

October's sunny disposition comes against a backdrop of USDA forecasts predicting a dimmer net farm income in the coming year. Yet, the farmers beg to differ, at least for now, their Financial Performance Index rose to its peak value since spring. It appears that better-than-expected yields in the Corn Belt and a slight uptick in corn prices have farmers bucking the gloomy income trend.

Contrasting the cheer in earnings, the readiness to spend on farm expansion has dampened, reflecting in a decreased Farm Capital Investment Index. A strong majority suggest it's not the season for big-ticket purchases, with interest rate hikes as the main deterrent.

The soil underfoot also plays a part in farm economics, with near-term farmland value expectations holding steady and a growing number of farmers betting on a rise in the next five years. The driving forces? Non-farm investment interest and the specter of inflation.

Farmland may be where the crops grow, but the strategies above ground are evolving. A quarter of the surveyed corn and soybean growers have already rolled out operational changes to address climate pattern shifts. From conservation tillage to drought-resistant crops, farmers are showing their adaptable spirit.

The data brought to the table by the Center for Commercial Agriculture and the CME Group offers a window into the thinking and planning that define modern farming—a sector that's as dynamic as it is essential.

Video: Learning to Wrench From Dad the Hard Way

Harvest is a week out and the farm picked this week to fall apart. The truck needs a battery, the barn curtain's got a problem, and the corn and beans are telling us we're out of time to get it all fixed.

So it's a full day of wrenching. Tork supervises while I get the truck back running, then we're out at the hog barn where one rusted up part has the whole curtain system hung up. Ladder work, cable work, and a little dad-and-son disagreement about the right way to do it. We close it out walking the fields, shelling beans and checking corn, because whether everything's fixed or not, harvest starts when harvest starts.

Chapters: 00:00 Everything breaks the week before harvest 01:00 Tork supervises while I fix the truck 12:30 Out to the barn to find the curtain problem 14:30 One rusty part hung up the whole curtain 20:00 Running the curtain cable from the ladder 24:00 Walking the beans and corn before harvest 26:30 Wrapping up

We're a 6th generation family farm in southeast Iowa showing the real ups and downs of pig farming and row crop farming. No script, just the work. Subscribe and follow along.

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